Anoplophora glabripennis

The Asian long-horned beetle (Anoplophora glabripennis) (ALB) is an invasive pest from Asia that came to Canada, the United States and Europe concealed in solid wood packing material.

It is a serious threat to deciduous hardwood trees in urban, suburban, and forested parts of the country. Larvae bore into a tree's heartwood, damaging and eventually killing the tree. If it became widely established in North America (it is already established locally), it could be one of the most destructive and costly invasive species ever (USDA Program Aid No.1655). This is target of current USDA eradication efforts.

These beetles are large (1-1.5 inches), and one beetle can provide more than 10 micrograms of DNA. Specimens in North America are all relatively closely related. Suitable specimens are available for sequencing.

All files were generated by the Baylor College of Medicine's i5k pilot project. The original source for these files is here. Please cite the following publication when using the A. glabripennis genome and annotations:
McKenna, D. D., Scully, E. D., Pauchet, Y., et al. Genome of the Asian longhorned beetle (Anoplophora glabripennis), a globally significant invasive species, reveals key functional and evolutionary innovations at the beetle–plant interface. Genome Biology 2017 17(1), 227. DOI: 10.1186/s13059-016-1088-8

Image Credit: Appleby James, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. View Source.